Amalgam Fillings and Mercury

There are a few types of fillings used to fix cavities. A common type of filling used is amalgam or “silver” as it is very strong and the amount of exposure to mercury is very minimal.

Another type of reliable filling is gold, but is more time consuming and more expensive. A cast of your tooth has to be taken and sent to a laboratory to have a custom filling made to be placed in the tooth.
And then there is the composite filling, which is popular as it is “tooth-colored.”
It is important to have regular dental exams and dental x-rays as they can detect early decay. If you have any cavities it is important to have them filled. If a cavity gets large enough it can cause pain and go into the nerve resulting in possible infection that would need root canal therapy or extraction. Fillings can be done to help preserve a tooth after decay is removed.
Because many people are concerned with the mercury content in “silver” fillings, you can learn more in the Journal of Canadian Dental Association and from Health Canada from the links below.

Mercury Levels in Urine

Facts about Mercury